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My little girl was hesitant to get in the pool and it took a while for her to get the courage to get in but once she did…
She absolutely loved it!
She looks sad here but I think she was just deep in thought.
There’s her smile again!
I love her silly faces.
I can’t believe my little girl is now two years old! She’s not so little anymore.
My Dearest Daughter,
One of the happiest days of my life was the day you were born and I can’t believe your second birthday is coming up so soon! Your birthday will always be important to me because it’s the day I became your mother. That’s something that nobody else but me can be. Your ten little fingers emerged into the world that day and grabbed hold of my finger and my heart. It seems like yesterday that you were born.
The sad truth about life is that it always goes by so fast. James 4:14b says, “It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”
Each day I try to soak in precious memories of time spent with you. Sometimes I take pictures, record videos, or jot down notes about you but many of the memories have to stay just that. Memories. Today you learned how to scoot down the stairs on your bottom. It has taken weeks to teach you but once you found the confidence to do it for the first time, this afternoon, you wanted to do over and over all day long! Today you wanted to call PawPaw {which you say with an adorable southern draw} so we called PawPaw. It made his day! He’s been laid up in bed with a bad back but when he was talking to you today and listening to your babble and giggles I could hear the smile in his voice. Tonight, when your Daddy and I put you in bed and waved at the door as we always do saying our “Goodnight”s and “I love you”s you surprised us by saying, “I love you” perfectly. It made my heart swell up and I hugged your Daddy tight after we shut the door. I feel so blessed to have you in my life.
Life passes very quickly. Try to remember that and enjoy what you have. Right now. There will always be another goal to achieve but there will never be another today. I used to get caught up preparing for tomorrow and missing out on today. For instance, I would work all spring and summer trying to get a good tan so that I would have one when I went to the beach. Then I would lay out non-stop at the beach so that when I came home everyone would comment, “You must have been to the beach.” I did this ritual for years without realizing it was pointless. Not to mention, it was horrible for my skin! I don’t advise it.
Don’t live for your peers approval. This is a lesson it took me a long time to learn and am still reminded of every once in a while. No matter what you do someone won’t like you. Or they won’t like a decision you made. Or your dress that day. That’s okay! Seek to please God above all else and don’t worry about what people say.
Precious time. I cherished the time with my grandparents and still do with the ones who are still here on earth. I can remember sitting as a little girl on my grandfather’s porch {who I called PaPa, pronounced PawPaw with a southern draw}. We sat together often, played often, and talked often. He was a wonderful man and I wish you had the opportunity to meet him. If you ever have a baby brother he’ll be named after my PaPa. I remember one afternoon sitting on that porch step drawing as PaPa was in his porch chair. He asked what I was drawing and I remember trying to keep my voice from shaking as I told him I was drawing him. I was a young girl at the time and I’ve never been much of an artist but I tried my hardest to make a realistic image of my Papa. I wanted to remember him just like he was, right there on that porch. I don’t know whatever happened to that picture but I’m sure it was thrown away by now. More importantly I have that memory.
I have the memory of us taking turns scratching each other’s back. I have the memory of him driving me and Nana {pronounced Nanny with a southern draw} to the mall many Sunday afternoons and him sitting in the car listening to the race. I have the memory of coming home from college and after spending a few minutes with him remembering how precious people are and that I need to slow down and not always be in such a hurry. I have the memory of making cheese and cracker sandwiches with him for our tea parties. At the same table you and I have have tea parties at now. I have the vivid memory of him hugging me at my college graduation and telling me how proud he was of me. That meant the world to me! I have the memory of the last time he spoke to me. We were leaving his hospital room and he was sitting up and in good spirits. I was sitting on the side of his bed. I hugged and kissed him goodbye and told him that I loved him. Oh and how did I ever!! I remember his last words to me were, “I love you too, Dollbaby.” He always did call me that.
In your life there will be a lot of people who come and go. Some are worth your time and your tears and others are not. Try to find the ones who are worth it and enjoy being with them. Don’t grow up too fast. Stay a kid as long as you can, enjoy your high school years, make lifelong friends in college, when you’re married adore your husband, and enjoy every minute with your little babies. Life goes by so very fast! Dream but don’t live for tomorrow, hug those who mean something to you and let them know how you feel today, and above all, think of each day as a gift from God. Because it is.
I love you, Sweetheart!
I hope all of this makes sense one day and doesn’t seem like a bunch of jibberish like it does to me right now. I’ve written the majority of this letter with tears streaming down my face. I don’t know how to effectively convey how precious time is but I hope you’ll think about it and figure it out on your own before you’re too old.
All my love,
Mom
A few bloggers and I decided to put together a Letters to our Children blog hop and we hope you’ll enjoy reading these heartfelt letters to our children. There are 7 blogs in total and to hop over to the next blog please visit, Brandy. She’s wonderful, I know you’ll enjoy her!
I need your help, ladies! All you fashionable, trendsetters, know-a-good-style-when-you-see-one people, I need your advice! You see my mind is a little overwhelmed with blogging {for 6 sites!}, guest contributing {on 3 others!}, running and decorating our church’s VBS, consulting a local company with social media {check out Black Tie Transportation for all your travel needs!}, starting a new MOPS program at our church {yay!}, and of course being a wife and a mommy. My mind is so cluttered that I need your help making a decision for my little girl’s birthday party that’s coming up.
You may remember her Pink Lemonade Party last year. Well, this year we’re going with a Minnie Mouse theme and I’m pretty excited about it. The thing is, I’m not in love with the Minnie Mouse party decor you can buy. The bright fuchsia, purple, and hot pink aren’t doing it for me. I like the classic Minnie. You know the one with the blue dress, yellow shoes and matching yellow hat with the flower in it? While I’m still sticking with the more modern pink shades, I’m not going as far as today’s purple colors. Long story short, I need you to help me decide which party set to buy.
The company Minted contacted me about doing a review for one of their party sets. It took me about two seconds to look at their well put together sets and say yes but it’s taking me much longer to decide which set I want. None of these sets perfectly scream Minnie Mouse! but I think they can all be made to work.
Here are the three sets I’m choosing between:
It’s pretty cute right? There is much more that’s included than what’s featured above but I’ll get into that after I showcase each of the party designs. There is also a fun party hat and pinwheel party favors! I love everything about this except the bunny slippers. I would have to figure out some way to cover them up.
I love the colors that are included in this set! It would help me from buying eeeeverything in one shade of pink or another but my concern is maybe it’s too grown up. What do you think? Oh, and while this set includes more than is pictured it doesn’t include the fun pinwheels because this is an adult party set. I could always buy them a la carte though!
This set doesn’t contain pink and if you know me you probably think I’m going crazy right now but I’m not! I still plan on incorporating pink into everything else so this would tie in well with it. But maybe it wouldn’t work. I’m torn! Even though this set looks more mature it is a kid set so it does have the pinwheels. Can you tell I like the pinwheels?
From the Minted website:
Personalize bunting banners and signs to make the party extra-special. Create a unique centerpiece with table confetti and a wishing tree, top your cupcakes with fun flag stickers, and send guests home with a treat in glassine bags closed with a stylish sticker. Party decor can be purchased as a suite (starting at $65) or a la carte. All suites come with bunting banner, stickers, table confetti, and paper plates & napkins.
There you have it, folks! There’s my dilemma and I can’t wait to hear your answer. Feel free to browse the Minted site and pick out a fourth option if you want.
Thank you!!
This year, I am going to attend the She Speaks Conference in North Carolina on July 25-27th! I couldn’t be more excited! She Speaks is an annual conference that brings together women from across the US to learn the “nuts and bolts of speaking, writing, leading, and influencing.” This is a great opportunity to network face-to-face with those who I’ve known online for so long. I’m thrilled to go and soak up all the knowledge I can! All I need now is a sponsor…or two.
Why would you want to sponsor me? That’s easy.
1. My audience is highly targeted.
If you’re trying to reach family minded, college graduates, female (and a few men!) consumers in the age range of 25-45 then we’re a perfect fit!
2. My audience is committed and engaged.
Site Stats as of June 1st:
My subscriber base consists of:
3. I’m a nice and easy going person to work with.
Ready to talk about a partnership?
How will the funds from sponsorship be allocated?
Full Sponsorship – $900
By becoming my only Full Sponsor, you will receive:
By Sponsoring/Providing an iPad3, DSLR or Laptop – Your logo will be placed on the item and I will be using it during She Speaks.
Interested? GREAT! It’s easy to contact me… Just send an email to MrsAshleyWalkup@gmail.com and we can talk.
I read a post over a year ago that listed awkward and awesome things together. This idea has stuck in my head for a while and I’m finally writing my version of the post…well, two posts actually. I’m breaking mine up into two posts so check back tomorrow for the “Awesome” segment. By the way, I can’t seem to locate the origin of the post so if you know please let me know and I’ll add the link here.
Now, on to the awkwardness…
Awkward Moments:
When I’m out with my husband and I run into someone I know but for the life of me can’t remember their name. It’s awkward to try and introduce them because the harder I try to think of their name the more my brain turns to mush. When possible I’ll try to walk up, hug them, and say, “Hi! How in the world have you been?” Then standing with them I’ll turn and say, “Have you met my husband?” That’s my husband’s cue to introduce himself and then my unnamed friend will reciprocate and save me from unwanted embarrassment.
Getting caught taking a drink from my toddler’s cup in public. Sometimes a girl’s thirsty and there’s nothing else around!
Leaving an answering machine message {are they still called that?} … and then giving out the wrong cell number. Well, at least half of it. “uhhh. No, I mean…here’s my other…” I’m a real professional.
Not realizing that I have walked out of the house and into the grocery store with my slippers on. Thankfully they weren’t the big fluffy bunny ones but were just the cute flip-flop ones instead!
Walking over to tell someone something important, waiting patiently for them to finish their current conversation, then when it’s my turn to speak, my mind goes blank. “Your hair looks lovely today. Yep, I just walked over here to tell you that.”
My husband pointing out an embarrassing typo in a blog post hoooouuurs after it was published.
Realizing in the evening that I went the entire day with a huge chunk of hair that didn’t make it into my pony tail. {#SportingaRatTail}
Walking into a spider web that no one else sees.
I’ll end with this awkward photo I took while trying to see what my hair looks like from behind. Why can’t I just invest in a $1 mirror like a normal person? I get embarrassed at myself every time I do this.
{Know that the posting this photo is a demonstration of the love I have for you, my dear readers.}
What awkward moments are you brave enough to share?
I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Dunkin’ Donuts. I received a Dunkin’ Donuts Party Kit to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.
I have always liked coffee, well, at least since I was 8 years old that is. I’ve tried a lot of different brands and while I like to switch it up a bit, Dunkin Donuts has been a top favorite for a long time. A co-worker introduced it to me when he bought coffee for the coffee maker I kept in my office that he often snuck coffee from. I’ve loved it ever since! Recently though, I’ve been introduced to Dunkin’ Donuts new seasonal flavors. This line includes Cocnut, Triple Berry, and Strawberry Shortcake. While I was a little leery to try the Coconut one I was anxious to try the other too.
Mom Central and Dunkin Donuts sent me everything I needed to host a fabulous coffee party! I got a bag of all three new flavors and goodie bags filled with coffee, tumblers, and coupons for all the guests. I decided to have a afternoon coffee party with the people who taught me to love coffee and a girlfriend of mine too.
It was a cool day that wasn’t too hot or too cold so it was perfect to enjoy both hot coffee and iced coffee. We had to buy a coffee filter so I could use these coffees with my Keurig. I even had a mini-party with my parents when they came down to visit the following week. This coffee is too good not to share! Everyone agreed that these flavors were delicious. I even liked the Coconut! My favorite though was the Strawberry Shortcake and it was just perfect with a dash of Sweet Cream creamer.
I love a hot {or truthfully a warm} cup of coffee in the morning and iced coffee in the evening. Iced coffee just gets me in the mood for summer!
Do you love iced coffee? If so give this Dunkin’ Donuts Iced Coffee Recipe below a try. It’s yummy!
Check out Dunkin’ Donuts new seasonal flavors available in grocery stores while they’re still available!
Minnie Mouse is one of my favorite Disney characters! She’s adorable for little girls and grown up girls too! I love her sweet face, her relationship with the mouse who started it all, Mickey, and her love of polka dots. What’s not to like?
If you follow me on Pinterest {and I hope you all do!} you’ve been bombarded with my Minnie Mouse pins lately. I’m sorry about that! You see, my little girl is about to turn two and I’m searching for every idea possible to make her Minnie Mouse party a success. {Check out my DIY Minnie Mouse Halloween costume I made her.} While browsing and browsing I found quite a few cute Minnie Mouse nail designs {which I pinned on my Pretty Nails board}. Some were simple and some were far above my skill level. I chose to do a design that was right in the middle. It stretched me out of my comfort zone and I’m very pleased with the results. If you think these are awful, please keep your comments to yourself. Don’t bust my bubble!
My favorite Mickey and Minnie images are from the 70’s and 80’s. Do you remember the ones? Minnie wore a blue dress, yellow shoes, and a hat with a flower in it? I tried to make my characters look like the ones from back then except that Minnie has a bow instead of a hat.
Have you ever done your own Mickey and Minnie Mouse Nail Art? If so, I would love to see it!
Here is a list of the products that I used for my Mickey and Minnie Mouse Design:
I’m sorry that this isn’t a tutorial post but I don’t think I could do it again if I tried! I set aside a block of time, figured out what I wanted my design to be, and carefully applied each stroke. Sometimes I used my dotting tool or my fingernail to remove a little paint if I went a little too far. After I was happy with my design I sealed it off with a top coat.
Even though this isn’t a tutorial, I would be happy to do my best to try and answer any questions you might have so please feel free to leave them in the comments below. Plus, feel free to leave a comment here telling Julep what you think of their new polish color!
Last month, I told you about my puzzle nail art and how I created it. I was excited about my puzzle nails and I’m glad to know that you liked them too! I’ve received numerous comments and emails requesting pictures to show the tutorial step by step so I’m here to hopefully visually explain with pictures what I tried to explain with words before. I hope this helps clear any confusion but as always, if you have any questions please feel free to contact me!
Here are a few simple steps that I think make for a great at home manicure:
One you’ve got your lightest color applied and fully dry cut two pieces of tape to use.
Apply the two pieces of tape to your nail. You want the two corners to meet in the middle and barely touch. Make sure you use the smooth sides of the tape and not the ridged edge where you tore it off…unless you’re not doing puzzles and you’re going for that look. Smooth the tape down with another finger nail to make sure there are no air pockets underneath where polish might seep. Then carefully apply your darker color over your light one. While your nail polish is still tacky and not fully dry begin sloooowly peeling the tape off. Wait until your polish is fully dry before moving on to the next step.
Grab your favorite dotting tool and bottle of polish. I use the cheapo dotting tools from Amazon {and love them!} but be warned they take a few weeks to ship. Right now they are selling for $1.86 shipped but the price could always change. You could also use a toothpick or a mechanical pencil. For this dotting technique I chose a wider end than I usually use.
Taking your brush from your bottle of polish dab some out on your work surface. I always use the back of a magazine I have laying around. Screw the lid on quickly and dip your dotting tool in the polish and then on your nail. Don’t wait too long because the polish gets tacky and hard to work with when it’s drying. Apply one dot of your darker color onto the square of the lighter color polish. Repeat with the other light colored square.
Repeat with your lighter color on top of your darker color. As you can tell by this picture the paint is thick and bubbled up – that’s okay! Once it’s dry it will be flat and look perfectly like a puzzle piece. Just be careful not to touch your nails for a while because it will take a little longer to dry this way. You can also add a top coat to help seal your manicure after your polish dries.
I think that’s it! If you got a little polish on your fingers you can remove that with nail polish remover. I find that an old art paint brush dipped into acetone works great for scrubbing off those pesky stray smudges of polish.
If you try out these puzzle nails I would love to see the results! Please email them to me or share them on Instagram with the tag #EmbracingBeauty so I can see it.
Happy Painting!
Because each of our Photo a Day Challenges have been more fun than the last I couldn’t help but host another one. Welcome to our May Photo a Day Challenge!
Did you play along with us last month? If you’re a regular photo-a-day’er or if this is your first challenge we welcome you to come and join us! This is all for fun so if you skip a day or two you can make them up later or just forget about them. No pressure! This is just a fun way to slow down and focus on the beauty in life. Every day moments in life are beautiful!
It has been a true joy to see all of your fun pictures and to get to know some of you better! More and more people are participating and I’ve been trying my best to make it around and comment or like everyone’s pictures every few days. I can’t wait to get started looking at this month’s pictures.
How to participate:
All it takes to join in is to simply take a photo and post it on a social media site with the hashtag #EmbracingBeauty. I’m using Instagram and sometimes I’ll post them on Twitter and Facebook too. When you tag your photos with the #EmbracingBeauty hashtag they’ll join the list of photos under the #EmbracingBeauty hashtag (on Instagram & Twitter). If you click on the “#EmbracingBeauty” it will pull up everyone’s photos who are playing along. You can see all the fun photo ideas other Embracing Beauty readers are sharing. What fun!!
Who’s ready to join me?
*This post has been sponsored by Social Fabric and Champions for Kids but all opinions remain my own. Full disclosure is at the bottom of the post.
My family likes to save where we can so we can donate more. We don’t donate to every charity out there but we donate too the charities that are closest to our hearts and several that our closest to our homes. This month is “Missions Month” at our church and I’m priviledged to be able to serve on the missions committee at our church. Our church believes in supporting local and national missions. As our pastor frequently says, “The light that shines the farthest shines the brightest at home.” The missions committee decided that the theme for this month would be “Let your light shine.” As a way to shine our light we decided to give of our resources to two local charities. Families are encouraged to bring donations for a local food bank and for a local pregnancy center. I love both of these ministries and I enjoy shopping for charities.
A week or so ago I was contacted with the opportunity to Pack a Sack for Champions For Kids and I jumped at the chance. Champions For Kids is partnering with Abbot Brand Products to bring nutritional non perishable foods to local food pantries and food banks. I think it’s neat the way that it worked out because I would be buying food to donate anyway and now I get to promote a great cause and tell you about it. If I wasn’t part of this campaign I wouldn’t have thought to have told you about my donation but now I can tell you how I donated and encourage you to do the same in your local community.
Being on the missions committee it was my job to help spread the word about this month-long campaign. We’ve posted fliers, made announcements, added the details to the morning power point slide, and even handed out little key chains reminding people to shine their light. We have a designated area in the church where people can bring non-perishable donations.
I went shopping at our near-by Walmart for items to donate. First, I grabbed a few things I wanted to get for our home like Infant Advil (for my sick little one), an adorable mini-golf set (for her birthday coming up), and a new bucket and sponge so I can wash the thick pollen off of my car. Secondly, I went to the tote section and picked out a medium size tote that I thought would be good to fill with food for the food bank. Then I went shopping! If you’re interested you check out my whole Walmart shopping trip.
Even when buying for others I’m still thrifty. When it came to the name brand items that I’m uncompromising on and I buy faithfully for my family I bought those to donate and when I found a store brand item that my family loves I bought it instead of the name brand. I used coupons, paired them with sales. I spent as much money as I had budgeted to spend but this way my money went a lot further.
I really want my daughter to learn to be a giver. I hope to show her example after example of how our family gives to others and is grateful for all we have. I know it’s never too early to start leading by example but unfortunately my little sweetheart is down with an awful virus. She wasn’t well enough to go shopping with me and wasn’t well enough to go to church to drop off our items. Hopefully she’ll feel better soon and she can help us deliver the items to the food bank at the end of the month.
I know money is tight in every home, I know that. Some of you may have a few hundred to give, others a few dollars, and some truly can’t give anything. I understand, I’ve been in each of those places at some point in my life. If you have the money to donate I want to encourage you to give to others less fortunate…especially the children in your neighborhood.
